April
13, 2006
New
Faces, New Places
By
Paul Shaheen
From whence do college recruits come?
Many come from places familiar to us all –
the Canadian Junior A ranks, Minnesota high schools, the
United States and North American Hockey Leagues and the
New England prep circuit. But over the last few years, the
growth of amateur hockey has brought with it collegiate
talent from places and leagues not previously seen.
A-OK in the AJ
Back in February, 17-year-old forward Andrew Letellier committed
to Merrimack for the fall of 2007.
Good for Letellier and for Merrimack, of course.
In a macro sense, the significance of the signing wasn't
so much the player or the school to which he committed.
Rather, it was the team and league for which he played this
season.
The 5-foot-9, 170-pound Letellier skated not
for an established USHL or NAHL side or a club from the
rapidly improving Eastern Junior Hockey League. Instead,
he played for the Portland (Maine) Junior Pirates, a member
of the young, yet flourishing, Atlantic Junior Hockey League.
 |
| Andrew Letellier, a forward with
the Atlantic Junior Hockey League's Portland Junior
Pirates, committed to Merrimack for the fall of 2007.
(Portland Junior Pirates photo) |
In only its third year of existence, the 11-team
circuit – affectionately referred to by many simply
as the “AJ” – can already count four players
(including Letellier) among its stable of stars who’ve
committed to the D-I ranks. The others are '85-born forward
Greg Costa of the Boston Bulldogs (on his way to Northeastern
next year), University of Connecticut recruit Mike Coppolla,
an '85 forward from the New York Bobcats, and '85 born defenseman
Brett Carriere of the Northern Mass Cyclones, who's accepted
an offer to play for Frozen Four finalist Maine this fall.
The 6-foot-1, 208-pound Ottawa native scored nine goals
and 58 points in 41 games for his club.
In today's hypercompetitive junior hockey
landscape, that's something worth hanging your hat on, not
to mention your stick and blades.
"We found that kids from the east were
looking for a higher level of hockey, but they wanted to
stay home or near home to do it," said AJHL President
Glenn Hefferan. "Really, the Eastern Junior Hockey
League taught us a lot of different lessons related to this
and the 'EJ' in many ways was the springboard for us."
Though the AJHL is only three years old, its
roots go back some 40 years.
It was 1966 – the Year of the Cat, for
purposes of this story. That’s when New York Rangers
coach and general manager Emile “Cat” Francis
created the Metropolitan Junior Hockey League in an effort
to help amateur hockey in and around the New York area grow.
As the league became more established, it produced players
such as Nick Fotiu and Brian and Joe Mullen, all of whom
moved onto lengthy NHL careers.
Nearly 40 years later, the Met still exists
as a solid junior B circuit. Over time, many of the MJHL
clubs established midget major squads to feed its junior
B programs. About five years ago, the Met’s brain
trust felt it was time to create a higher-level junior league.
The AJ was born.
Starting in the fall of 2003, six clubs from
the Met fielded an additional junior club to compete in
the fledgling league. Even though two teams have already
folded, the AJ has grown to 11 clubs. While kids pay to
play –the cost of skating for an AJHL club runs around
$4,500 per year for ice time, travel, equipment and such
– Heffernan argues kids playing in free leagues end
up paying just as much or more for the experience.
"It's pretty simple really," explained
Heffernan, whose resides in Ridgewood, N.J. "Leagues
like the USHL and NAHL are free, but show me kids playing
in those leagues and I'll show you parents who are spending
$5,000 to $6,000 a year traveling to watch their son play
and/or sending him money for living expenses. In the end,
it's about a wash. Don't get me wrong, developmentally,
playing in a league like the USHL is a phenomenal experience,
but we can provide eastern kids a high level of hockey,
get them noticed by D-I schools and they don't necessarily
need to leave home to do it."
The geographic expanse of the AJHL runs from
Portland, Maine in the north to Bowie, Md., which hosts
the Washington Junior Nationals, to the south. In between
are clubs such as the Philadelphia Little Flyers, the New
Jersey Rockets, the Hartford Junior Wolf Pack, and this
year’s league champion, the Long Island-based New
York Bobcats. And there's plenty of room for more. According
to Hefferan, at least four applications are under consideration
for expansion, which could come as soon as next year.
"I'm proud of what we've accomplished
in three years," added Hefferan, "because a lot
of people thought for sure we wouldn't succeed."
Considered a Junior C league by USA Hockey
– the EJHL has a similar ranking, while the NAHL (Tier
II) and the USHL (Tier I) are both labeled as junior A –
the AJHL has its sights set on being designated Tier III
Junior A, a new designation being established by USA Hockey's
Junior Council.
The AJHL plays a 42-game regular season schedule;
after adding up showcase tournaments, most teams end up
playing closer to 52 matches. Hefferan says the AJHL tries
operating like a Tier II Junior A league – clubs must
have full-time coaches and daily practices. The only differences
are that AJHL athletes pay tuition and not every team’s
home rink accommodates the Tier II minimum of 1,500 fans.
The AJ is earning more respect from college
coaches with each passing day and the efforts of its member
clubs are helping build the positive perception. One such
success story is the Junior Pirates, who share a marketing
arrangement (and team logo) with the AHL’s Portland
Pirates, the top minor league affiliate of the NHL's Anaheim
Mighty Ducks.
"We may only draw 200 to 300 fans a game,
but what interests us is how many D-I scouts we can get
into the building," said coach and team co-owner Jay
Pekora. "What matters to us and to our kids is what
we teach them and how hard we work to give them exposure."
One such player is Letellier, who finished
the season with 27 goals and 48 points in 38 games. "He's
already a very skilled shooter and goal scorer, and as he
gets stronger, he'll score even more," Pekora said.
"Another year here with us will help him become a better
player in all three zones."
Like several other AJHL franchises,
Portland has both an AJHL and Met League club as well as
midget major and midget squads, the latter of which is coached
by former Maine Black Bear Trevor Roenick, the younger brother
of Los Angeles Kings forward Jeremy Roenick.
| Band
of Brothers |
|
A
few weeks ago, '88-born defenseman Keith Seabrook
of the British Columbia Junior Hockey League’s
Burnaby Express committed to the University of Denver.
The younger brother of current Chicago Blackhawk blueliner
Brent Seabrook could join the Pioneers as soon as
this fall, what with Hobey Baker Award winner Matt
Carle signing with the San Jose Sharks.
Like so many others who've committed
to Denver of late, Seabrook's decision didn't take
long. He'd only visited the Mile High city one week
before making his decision, and quickly chose Denver
over fellow D-I suitor Massachusetts.
"A great program, a great city
and it's a bit closer to home," said the 6-foot,
198-pound Seabrook. "The campus is about 10 minutes
from the main part of the city and I liked the location.”
Seabrook scored 10 goals and 24 assists
in 57 regular-season games and added 17 points in
17 playoff games for the Express, which has advanced
to the BCHL playoff final. A Delta, B.C. native, Seabrook
and his older brother both grew up dreaming of playing
in the NHL but they chose dissimilar paths.
Brent Seabrook, 20, 6-foot-3 and 220
pounds, parlayed four outstanding seasons with the
Western Hockey League's Lethbridge Hurricanes into
an admirable rookie campaign for an otherwise underwhelming
Chicago Blackhawks club. Chicago drafted him 14th
overall at the 2003 NHL entry draft.
Keith considered the major junior route
– he is property of the WHL's Calgary Hitmen
– but the offensive-minded defenseman turned
to college after a conversation with a former Michigan
Wolverine.
"Over the summer I'd spent some
time with Jeff Tambellini at his family's summer home
in B.C.," explained Seabrook, who has friends
with a summer home close to the Tambellini's. "I
asked him to tell me more about the college hockey
scene. I liked what I heard and decided to play another
year of junior to see what options might come along."
"His developmental curve is quite
steep and he has a real sense for the game,"
says second-year Express head coach and former NHL
defenseman Rick Lanz, who spent seven seasons with
the Vancouver Canucks. "He's a very intelligent
young man who has all the skills in place. He sees
the game well and he passes about as well as most
pros I've seen. He needs to improve on his all-around
game maturity, but that will come with time and experience."
— P.S. |
Southern Comfort
Over the last two years, the NAHL’s
Texarkana Bandits, a club co-owned by head coach/general
manager Jon Cooper and former NHLers Brett Hull and Kelly
Chase, have been successful at not only convincing kids
to come play below the Mason-Dixon line, but also of getting
them to play as a unit, and, ultimately, getting them onto
college.
Among them is '88-born defenseman Pat Maroon,
a hulking 6-foot-4, 227-pound blueliner from St. Louis currently
ranked 184th by NHL Central Scouting among North American
prospects for the 2006 NHL Entry Draft. You've heard of
the old saying “less is more?” That certainly
applies to Maroon, who, as an NAHL rookie, had a great sense
for the game, but struggled with his weight.
"It was the only thing holding him back,"
said Cooper, who worked with Maroon to help him lose 35
pounds since trying out for the team last summer. "There
aren't too many blessed with his physical ability and set
of hands."
And now that the weight's gone, Maroon's even
more of a player than he was before, so much so that Ferris
State went after Maroon and snagged a verbal commitment
from him early this season. In 57 regular season games,
Maroon – who also spent time at forward – bagged
23 goals and 60 points.
"Scouts were waiting for his skating
and skills to come together and they have this year,"
Cooper explained. "You could see he had talent, but
he was just so overweight. But you could tell there was
something about him. Now it's all coming together."
The same can be said for Texarkana as a whole,
as well as any number of Bandits are now getting their D-I
due. Goaltender Riley Gill (who went 35-9-1 this year) committed
to Western Michigan for next fall. Meanwhile, '86-born forward
Casey Haines, an Indiana, Pa., native who was the Bandits'
captain this year, led the club through the regular season
with 29 goals and 73 points.
"He could be our all around best player.
He makes the ship go," Cooper said of Haines. "He
can score, he plays all positions on special teams and he's
a true cheerleader in the dressing room."
Another top prospect is '87-born forward Aaron
Lewicki. At 6-feet and 205 pounds, Lewicki scored 34 goals
and 56 points during the regular season, and is gaining
attention from the likes of Ohio State, Miami, Michigan
State and Notre Dame.
"He's a flat-out, bona-fine goal
scorer," said Cooper. "He's so strong and can
bench press 300 pounds and he has a lot of puck luck around
the net."
New Sensations
The U.S. Junior A landscape will have at least
two new franchises next year from which college assistants
will be able to recruit.
The NAHL will welcome the Marquette Rangers
to the fold. The team will play at 3,100-seat Lakeview Arena,
the former home of Northern Michigan. The Rangers’
logo is awesome – a hockey stick crossed with a mining
pick. So is the team motto: Hockey with American ingenuity,
Canadian grit and European flair.
The second new franchise will be the USHL's
Columbus Junior Blue Jackets, which will play out of Nationwide
Arena, the home of the NHL club of the same name.
Could Ohio’s capital city become a new
scouting hotbed? It's possible, for just as NHL scouts have
lived in and around Ann Arbor for years – they’ve
been able to watch junior A, major junior and college hockey
without driving more than a half-hour in any direction.
– Columbus will soon host NHL, college and junior
A clubs.
The Junior Jackets will be owned, more
than likely, by NAHL Cleveland Junior Barons owner Tom Goebel,
who is rumored to be selling his interest in the NAHL club.
In addition, Blue Jackets GM Doug MacLean will also have
a hand in supporting and operating the Junior Jackets.
State of Hockey
ROI congratulates this year's winners of the
Minnesota high school championships. In Class A, the St.
Thomas Academy Cadets came back for a thrilling 4-3 victory
over the Duluth Marshall Hilltoppers to claim its first-ever
state title.
STA had to go to overtime to defeat Orono,
3-2, in the state quarterfinals – junior JC Blaisell
tied the match with but 38 seconds to play and sophomore
Tony Mergens won it 4:09 into extra time. In semifinal play
versus Hermantown, the Cadets squandered a 5-2 lead before
winning in double overtime on a goal by senior Jack Baer.
In the title game, STA trailed 3-1 going into
the third period, the Cadets scored twice in a span of 26
seconds midway through the third to draw level before Baer
won it at 11:17 of the frame.
In Class AA, another St. Paul-area private
school, Cretin-Derham Hall, won its first title with a 7-0
thrashing of Grand Rapids before 17,844 fans at the Xcel
Energy Center. Juniors Ryan McDonagh and Chris Hickey each
scored twice for the Raiders, who scored on all five of
their third-period shots. Grand Rapids, which had upset
Hill-Murray 3-2 in the semifinals the day before, managed
only eight shots on goal.
ROI also congratulates '88-born defenseman
David Fischer, who was named winner of Minnesota’s
prestigious Mr. Hockey Award the day after the state tournament
concluded. Fischer, 6-foot-3 and 175 pounds, scored eight
goals and 39 points for Apple Valley H.S. He’s ranked
the 49th-best prospect for the June NHL Draft by Red Line
Report and has committed to Minnesota. His high school teammate,
Kyle Medvec, will join the USHL’s Sioux City Musketeers
for the remainder of this season and perhaps next season.
Medvec is heading to Vermont in the fall of 2007.
Paul
Shaheen is the publisher of Research on Ice and contributes
recruiting updates to Inside College Hockey throughout the
year. To subscribe to Research on Ice's recruiting e-mail
newsletter, contact Paul at puckkeg@comcast.net.
